So long Waco .... Made it to Memphis!

The last 10 days since I wrote have been much different than I anticipated. I expected lots of goodbyes and one more week of "normalcy" at the farm with a few more nights of packing, etc. However, a stomach bug started with me and spread to the girls making for a lot of canceled plans and next to no goodbyes. Puking in a compost toilet is not in any way pleasant! We said goodbye to Charles and left Waco Tuesday morning with anticipation to see friends along the way on our road trip to Memphis and prayed we were no longer contagious. We had a great time with friends but it was exhausting as Ava seemed to have caught an extended version of the virus that caused her to have episodes of vomiting at random in between hours of seemingly normal behavior. (This makes a mama crazy). Wednesday included a 7-hour car ride with a nauseated 2 year old and a lot of throw up in the back seat. Thankfully, we spent a few nights in Jackson with some friends, Ann and John Lewis, who are very connected to But God Ministry with whom we will be serving in Haiti. The stay with the Lewis family was such a blessing as Ann doted on the girls and kept them while I saw friends. Ann, being a mom, wasn't the least bit frazzled by a virus and all that it entailed. She accompanied me to an intense doctor appointment for Ava where the doctor/nurses made 3 long attempts to draw blood to no avail. Ava didn't scream a single time ... tough cookie! Lilly was helpful in singing to Ava during the needle pricks. In fact, Lilly has now memorized songs from the movie Frozen and has taken it upon herself to teach everyone else. The adventures have not been lacking already. Today we made it to Memphis where we will be with my family for a week. I unpacked the car tonight for what seemed to be the millionth time of unpacking lately. Transition is not easy! Ava seems to be better and we are all hoping for an uneventful few days.

Today Lilly and I were naming off things we were grateful for and the list seemed to go on and on ... dinners with friends this week, living at the farm, Ava feeling better, reliable car, goldfish and gatorade, visiting friends, school with Mrs. Ann, gluten free snacks, knitting with Gran'Mary, etc.....

We saw some small miracles happen this week between Charles finding help getting suitcases to Dallas and having his car repaired as well as friends offering to keep Mack as a back up plan and the doctor not charging a dime. Also, after realizing our slim chance for approval for financial assistance at a local hospital in Waco for Ava's December visit to the ER that was several thousand dollars, we were approved and only charged 3% of the balance. Lots of affirmation that it's all coming together.

We really are so grateful for the little things and for those of you who are partnering with us in these adventures. It's making the world go round for us ... God is so good.

Giving thanks in all circumstances ...

Tea Parties and Goat Milking

Since I last wrote we have made great strides and done a lot to prepare for Haiti. This week we bought four one-way plane tickets, packed 8 large suitcases, celebrated a SIX year old, milked goats and spent time with friends to whom we hate to say goodbye.

First and foremost, Lilly turned 6 on January 9th, a birthday she shares with her grandmother who in turn shares that same birthday with her grandmother. We started celebrating over Christmas break with family and on her actual big day we had a little tea party to celebrate. The only small glitch was her best little friend, Abby, with a birthday 3 days later, woke up with the stomach bug on Lilly's birthday so we have postponed their joint celebration and let's just say the partying continues ...

One challenge that we didn't expect was buying plane tickets...which is not as easy when one is trying to get to Haiti with a big dog like Mack. His weight, the crate shape, the weather, the plane size are all variables that play a part in the itinerary. Bottom line is Mack is on a diet and we're praying for cooler weather in Haiti for that day ... Until then, thank you Marcus and Becky for loving on Mack for the in between time while we can't have him with us.

We will fly from Dallas to Haiti on FEBRUARY 17 (in 34 days)! 

Packing has been a more detailed process than I think Charles or I imagined as we have really tried to discern what we need and what we want to take with us. We are condensing so much into 3 suitcases per person. We are down to the last few suitcases and there is a peace and stress that comes with that all at the same time. A friend, Ann Lewis, called last week and offered to pack a suitcase for us to send with her son, David, who was going to the Hope Center to do some videography. What a blessing to know we will have some necessities as well as a few of our favorite things waiting for us when we arrive!

Life on the farm has become second nature quite quickly. The cockadoodledoo's don't wake me like they did the first week. I am making friends with the dogs on the farm roads during my runs. Charles finished work at RBDR and started volunteering at the farm by doing whatever help is needed whether it be in the greenhouse or shoveling manure, milking goats and so on. He has loved learning farm life first hand. Lilly went along with him today and said "yeah, they are nice goats." We have gotten more acquainted with the farm interns and staff this last week as we share a farm-to-table lunch together every week day. I have "chef" duty tomorrow and will hopefully turn their harvest into a meal (for 30) if all goes well.

Lilly and I had a great homeschool day yesterday which I think reassured both of us that we can have a good time with it. We started with recess (or my workout) where I found out lilly can hold a 2-minute plank with little to no effort. A+ for P.E. Lilly! I'm trying to let go of my high expectations that every day will go that smooth and instead let it be milking goats and Uno some days. 

Ava on the other hand has taken off with potty training and is now living her days with a sugar buzz from all the marshmallows she consumes as potty rewards.  

We will live on the farm one more week and then the girls and I will hit the road for the beginning of many adventures. As we played at the park with friends in 70 degree weather today, we realized how much we will miss wacky Waco. 

Stay tuned ... 

Life In Between

I've been blogging a lot in my head lately but unfortunately many times on a run and without a publish button accessible. It's been a while since we last updated you. We celebrated Thanksgiving in Waco with my family and then started packing the house. December was a doozie in every sense of the word. Moving is a roller coaster anyways, but moving while two kids have the flu, a new roommate moves in, taking a road trip through tornadoes and celebrating Christmas at the end of it all was nearly over the top. We all survived the end of the year and were happy to ring in 2014. 

One afternoon in December Charles and I met at home and then we took him to pick up the moving truck. We were both sleep deprived from the late nights of packing. Later that day I saw one of our cars in the garage and the moving truck out front but didn't see the other car. I asked him where it was. We both went outside looking for it. Neither of us could think of where we had left it or what had happened when Charles looked at me and said "was it stolen?" ... a little later Charles piped up with "oh yeah, I parked it at the park across the street" ... it was a little bothersome that we lost our car and that it took us that long to realize it was where we parked it. That's just an example of some of the moments that go along with moving countries. 

The holidays had their own highs and lows as well. Seeing family and friends was a comfort and we were blessed to have two weeks off of real life! Adventures started when we headed back to Waco, arriving at the World Hunger Relief Farm instead of home. Like any road trip, I arrived in need of a restroom and got an orientation on compost toilets while dancing around wishing I could just forgo the composting part and get some relief. In the last few days we have awakened to roosters, talked to the pigs, eaten farm fresh produce and embraced farm life altogether.


This morning I withdrew Lilly from her school and began the homeschool journey (which includes Creole lessons). She is enthusiastic which helps me. Ava's interruptions prove to be entertaining and distracting in more ways than one. Ava wakes up saying "Bonjour" due to her second-hand Creole learning from audio lessons in the car. Everyone is getting homeschooled or carschooled here. I'm praying the whole thing happens and we all are a little more educated by the time we come back than we are now. We have many adventures in our future I imagine.

What's Ahead ....

Charles' last official day at RBDR is tomorrow and then he will transition to working at the World Hunger Relief Farm (WHRF) on Wednesday. The WHRF is an organization here in Waco that implements sustainable agriculture systems for the purpose of training others who will then likely replicate it in other parts of the world. The organization has generously offered us a place to live on the farm while Charles takes part in learning first hand from some as well as training others in his expertise. This is very similar to what his position will entail in Haiti.

Lilly, Ava and I plan to start our 2014 tour on Jan. 21 with a few stops between Waco and Memphis while Charles stays at the farm another week. Our original plan was to fly out Feb. 1 but it's been pushed back a couple of weeks so Charles plans to meet us in Memphis at the very end of January before we take a road trip up North! We plan to see friends and family on the East Coast for about a week before we fly out on Feb. 17 from Jackson, MS!

Let us know if you want to meet up between now and then ... we would love to see you if we can! We are glad to have you along for this ride.

If you are interested in partnering with us in prayer or financially, please contact us or But God Ministries at charleskmccall@gmail.com or www.butgodministries.com.

We are close to our financial goals and are still in need of one-time donations to get us off the ground and ready to serve in Haiti.

Stay tuned ...

Hannah (for all of us)